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IMAGES: Bathroom Science

Next time you think about dropping into bed without brushing your teeth or cleaning your contacts, consider what might be growing on them. Shown here are biofilms of bacteria in dental plaque and in the contact lens case of a patient diagnosed with an eye infection. (The tooth bacteria, stacked into corncob shapes, are unidentified, while the lens case contains dried-up rod-shaped bacteria and Acanthamoeba cysts.) Professors seeking photos to spice up their lectures can troll a new American Society for Microbiology educational Web site offering over 150 images, along with a slew of course materials. Check out everything from hot spring-loving algal mats to bacteria lurking in septic systems, the Lyme disease parasite, and a movie of budding yeast at: http://www.microbelibrary.org/